Well, here’s something you
don’t see every day: A Moscow, Russia-based mobile phone
company is getting ready to reveal a new type of phone that, if
successful, could usher in a whole new generation of
smartphones.

Their novel concept: a two-sided smartphone that
features a full-color LCD screen on one side, and an
electronic-paper display on the other.

The YotaPhone, by Yota Devices, features
an LCD screen on one side, and electronic-paper display on the
other.

The company, Yota Devices, believes that the
two-screen device — aptly referred to as
“YotaPhone” — will allow users to
enjoy the seamless streaming of information as well as longer
battery life.

Yota will officially show the new phone at the
Mobile World congress in Barcelona in February 2013.

Background behind the story

To date, the company has been working on
YotaPhone for more than two years, with the first model being shown
to then Russian President Dmitry Medvedev in September 2010 at a
meeting on the country’s modernization program.

The company has since filed a number of patents,
copyrights, and design rights associated with YotaPhone.

The phone itself comes with many of the standard
features that the average smartphone user is already accustomed to,
including a dual-core Snapdragon S4 processor, 2-Gbyte or RAM, a
720p 4.3-in. display, 12-Mpixel camera, 2,100-mAh battery, LTE, and
NFC, all of which is supported by Android 4.2 Jelly Bean.

The addition of an electronic-paper
display to a modern-day smartphone allows for convenient, always-on
functionality.

Having an e-ink display allows users to enjoy
the continuous streaming of data in real time, from Twitter feeds
to chat sessions to stock-market tickers, all without having to
wake up one’s phone from sleep mode or otherwise drain
the battery.

“Today if you want to check your
e-mail, calendar, or social media page, you have to pick up your
phone, turn it on, open the application, and only then can you
receive the information,” Yota CEO Vladislav Martynov
explained. “With YotaPhone, this information will appear
on the electronic paper display effortlessly, continuously and
updated in real time.”

The extra screen also gives users the ability to
display pictures, screen grabs of maps, or display ticket
information without ever having to touch the phone. The image
itself even remains in place when the phone runs out of
battery.

The electronic-paper screen continues to
display even when the YotaPhone runs out of battery.

“This will be the first time that
people will be able to personalize the information they want to
receive on their phones in an effortless way,” Martynov
adds. “You tell YotaPhone what information you want and
when you want it. It becomes your personal assistant, reminding you
of what’s important to you.”

Some minor sticking points

While there’s a lot of potential with
a product like this, some odd decisions are being made. For one,
there’s a curved display on just one side of the phone,
using a first-of-its-kind rounded glass from Corning. While the
market clearly craves thinner phones, this bulging design is
purposeful as it is meant to encourage the user to always point the
e-ink screen up when the phone is set down.

Smart, yes, but it does make the phone a bit
more cumbersome than need be.

Also, the e-ink screen is not fully touch
sensitive; rather, it’s only partially so. Additionally,
a color version of the screen is unlikely until a few generations
of the product have come out (or until Apple or Google swoops in
and updates the technology for its own line of product).

Outlook

Yota isn’t the first dual-screen
smartphone to hit the market: dual-screen LCD display phones have
been introduced to the Asia market before, though they
haven’t fared well.

Companies have also introduced smartphones with
partial e-ink displays in the past, while others have come up with
slip-on covers that use the low-power screens. Never heard of them?
Then you can probably guess how successful they were with their
attempt at carving out a niche audience.

To set themselves up for success, Yota is taking
a different approach than other companies when it formally
introduces itself to the mobile market. You see, unlike its
predecessors — which often license their ideas to more
established manufacturers — Yota will produce its own
design and bring it to market through contracts with global
carriers. Production of the devices will take place in Asia by a
tier-one supplier.

E-Ink Corp., meanwhile, has been working with
Yota to develop the e-reader aspect of the phone, which should
comfort those questioning whether the technology will be a
knock-off of the real thing. The company has said that the
YotaPhone will be the first to fully integrate its technology.

After the YotaPhone is introduced in February,
the company’s goal is to have it hit shelves come the
second half of 2013. ■